Mililani Traskhawai'i ​island

Mililani is running for hawai'i island!

Mililani 's Promise

If given the opportunity to serve as an OHA Trustee again, I will bring my entire lifetime of practice in the law, human/indigenous rights and the crafting of public policy to help ensure that we, as a Board, faithfully discharge our fiduciary obligations in all of our undertakings, and in all of the decisions we make. I am committed to ensuring that when the Board makes determinations, “that the decision will benefit the Hawaiian peoples, that the outcomes are ones that better the conditions of Native Hawaiians.” I believe in so doing, we will also ensure the well-being of the community at large. I want to help make sure that Trustees meet their legal obligations. Every decision must be preceded by the question: how is this going to impact the beneficiary? And is it going to better their conditions? OHA, by law, has an obligation to ensure that Hawaiian entitlements to the Ceded Land Trust assets are protected. But this has not been the case for marine-based assets. OHA supported the marine monument in the North West Hawaiian Islands which put two thirds of the state of Hawai’i into a UNESCO/Federal marine protected area. This status impacted the largest marine fisheries in the entire Pacific Basin and also significant cultural and religious sites belonging to the Hawaiian peoples. OHA failed to secure for the Hawaiian peoples fishing and other subsistence and cultural rights. This is a tremendous loss to the trust, which OHA needs to correct in the future. I look forward to applying my experience to this effort. As I hope my comments on every issue indicate, I am a firm believer in the power of thoughtful, well-grounded public policy that reflects the input of those whose lives will be shaped by those policies. I believe that bringing my legal training and career experience to the table at OHA will contribute to better stewardship of the assets that are meant to lift up the Hawaiian peoples and make this a better place for all. I look forward to the opportunity to serve my community and the people of Hawaii once again through OHA.